


The Containment

by crispyCh0colate



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Choose your own advanture, Human!Bill, M/M, it's hard to really determine tags yet, older!Pines, this can go in so many directions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-13
Updated: 2016-01-31
Packaged: 2018-04-20 13:55:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 16,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4789715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crispyCh0colate/pseuds/crispyCh0colate
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Last summer, the pines have sealed the dream demon Bill Cipher into a human body and erased his entire memory of himself with their trusted memory gun.  Now Dipper has to struggle with keeping Bill in line, who thinks himself to be a human and his college buddy. The future of Gravity falls depends on the choices either of them will make.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prolouge

**Author's Note:**

> This story is reader driven and at the end of each Chapter there will be 2 to 3 options on how to continue in the next chapter.
> 
> The story will update Sunday's and voting period ends on wednesday. The option with the most votes will be written. Please write in a comment which option you want to choose. If there is a tie I will choose an option randomly.

Dipper Pines, 22 years old and a student at Gravity Falls University, had a big problem. Not too long ago, one year to be exact, he and his family had prevented the apocalypse from taking place. Last year’s summer had been one literal hell of a ride. The dream demon Bill Cipher had finally managed to get his hands on the universal rift that Dipper and his great uncle Stanford Pines had been protecting. Thus the insane demon had tried to open up a gate to his terrifying nightmare realm. And he would have succeeded, if it hadn’t been for the spell that Stanford had found deep in the archives of the Gravity Falls museum. 

They had managed to bind Bill to a human vessel, thus rendering most of his magic powers useless. Then Dipper had erased the entire memory of Bill’s identity with a memory gun that once belonged to a secret society.

Long story short, now he was responsible for keeping an eye on a completely clueless ex-dream demon that believed himself to be nothing more than Dipper’s roommate and college buddy. 

Bill had been unconscious for over a week after they erased his memory and they had used this time to make up a story for when he would wake up again. Stanford had voiced his concerns about keeping Bill alive and free. He had said that there was a possibility that he would eventually remember. The memory gun could wipe a lot of things right out of someone’s mind, but an entire identity like Bill’s was hard to get rid of. Especially since the demon had such a vast knowledge of the entire human history. 

They had enrolled Bill in university along with Dipper who had planned to study history. They had thought it might catch Bill’s fancy as well. Well, they had been wrong.

Although Dipper was pretty sure that all sorts of studies would have been lost on Bill, the guy was even more annoying as a simple human. He mostly refused to go to classes, leaving Dipper in constant anxiety over leaving him alone. The boy also had to promise to stop looking for the supernatural, even though it had basically become his life. But they just couldn’t risk confronting Bill with anything that might remind him of his true self.

And that was exactly the big problem Dipper had to face now.

“Say, Pine Tree, when are we gonna leave tomorrow? Because I absolutely need my sleep, so no earlier than two PM!” Bill chimed and then laughed when Dipper groaned and let his face fall on the desk. Even after getting his memories erased, Bill continued to call him that awful nickname, that still sent shivers down his spine whenever he heard it. But there was nothing he could do about that. He’d just have to put up with it.

“No way we’re going that late! We’re leaving at eleven AM whether you want to or not. I’ll drag you to the car if I have to.” Dipper shot back but bit his bottom lip. 

The semester break would start tomorrow and Dipper would spend the months without classes in the good old Mystery Shack with his sister and two great uncles. But of course he had to bring Bill along as well. So much for keeping him away from familiar places. Stanford hadn’t thought that one through and that was a wonder since the guy was basically a genius. 

“It’d certainly be fun to watch you try that,” Bill giggled and then let himself fall down onto his bed in the opposite corner of the room from where Dipper’s stood.

The boy just let out a frustrated groan, while continuing to pack all his things up to get ready for tomorrow.

“But alright, I can deal with that time. But I gotta sleep immediately then. You know I need my rest,” the blond haired nuisance called.

“You didn’t even pack yet!” Dipper complained and threw his hands up in a frustrated motion.

“Thanks for being so kind as to do it for me, Pine Tree!” Bill replied and closed his eye--his right one was missing and he was left with an empty eye socket. They had explained it as an accident--a shit eating grin still on his face.

“This is going to be a terrible summer,” Dipper mumbled to himself and proceeded to pack the bags for both of them.

 

**\---**

 

Bill Cipher, probably 21 years old, had a lot of problems. The biggest of all being the fact that he had absolutely no idea who he really was. Sure, the Pines had told him that his name was Bill Cipher and that he was an old family friend that would study with Dipper. But that still did not change the fact that he didn’t really knew himself. Apparently both him and the other boy had been out on a hike through the forest when he fell down a cliff. He had lost his right eye as well as his entire memory. 

They said he had been in a coma for about a week. He believed them for the most part, but it didn’t change the fact that he also felt a little weird. Like he didn’t quite belong. Sometimes he noticed that Dipper looked at him with an expression he couldn’t quite decipher. But he didn’t let it bother him. All in all, he was pretty carefree. That was probably how he had managed to fall down a cliff in the first place. He definitely wouldn’t put it past himself.

When arriving at college though he pretty quickly noticed that learning was not at all something he had any interest in. After going to classes with Dipper for a few days he had quickly started to skip them, much to the other’s dismay. The Pines boy always tried to motivate him but eventually he must’ve noticed that it was a fruitless effort. 

Instead, Bill spent his time sleeping most of the time. The young man had pretty quickly realized that he must have some kind of special ability because he could completely control his dreams. 

Whenever he went to sleep he would find himself in a grayscale town surrounded by a dark forest. The town seemed vaguely familiar and there were people living in it that mostly didn’t seem to recognize him. That being said, he was probably the only colourful thing in this world of grey. He wore a bright yellow sweater that Mabel had made him, at least most of the time, and it definitely stood out in his dreams. 

Soon enough he had learned to completely shape his dream world into whatever he wanted, mostly by abandoning the town to live through some much more interesting fantasies of his own. Sometimes he was a little bit concerned that he found so much fun in death and destruction, but he quickly disregarded that like he always did when it came to facing self-critique. 

“Say, Pine Tree, when are we gonna leave tomorrow? Because I absolutely need my sleep, so no earlier than two PM!” he asked on the day before their semester break. They were going back to the Mystery Shack to live with Dipper’s family and he had to admit he was pretty excited for that. He couldn’t wait to explore the lush forest around the old building. Although he was pretty sure that Dipper’s uncle would make him work in the Shack at some point.

“No way we’re going that late! We’re leaving at eleven AM whether you want to or not. I’ll drag you to the car if I have to,” Dipper replied and Bill could tell that the boy was already annoyed at him. It always brought a smile to his lips. While getting up at ten didn’t sound like fun, he wouldn’t mind too much this time.

“It’d certainly be fun to watch you try that.” Bill giggled a little at the thought of Dipper literally dragging him through the dorm building. He stretched himself and flopped down onto his bed, staring at the ceiling for a moment.

“But alright. I can deal with that time. But I gotta sleep immediately then. You know I need my rest.” While Bill wasn’t really tired yet he knew that would certainly piss Dipper off. He didn’t really know why he had the urge to push the boy’s buttons like that, but it wasn’t like he’d stop anyway.

He wasn’t let down.

“You didn’t even pack yet!” came the frustrated groan from Dipper seconds later. Bill grinned wide but closed his eye, pretending to fall asleep already.

“Thanks for being so kind to do that for me, Pine Tree!” he still added, knowing that would probably send Dipper over the edge. And he was right, of course.

While Dipper mumbled something to himself, Bill eventually did fall asleep, making his way into his dream land.

He was certain that this was going to be a great summer.

 

**Option 1: Be Dipper  
Option 2: Be Bill**


	2. Bill

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Option 2 'Be Bill' won!

The car trip to the Mystery Shack had taken way too long for Bill’s liking. That, of course, had led to a lot of bickering between Dipper and him, which ended more in Dipper’s suffering than anything else. Bill knew that Dipper was already done with him the moment they reached the shack. Bill cackled when Dipper got out of the car and slammed the door shut. He’d just been in the middle of a great story he made up in his dreams, but apparently Pine Tree wasn’t much into Pirate Stories. Especially not the brutal ones.

Bill shrugged and quickly followed Dipper out of the car and grabbing his backpack from the backseat. He didn’t actually own many things to take with him and the very little money he had, he’d gotten from the Pines. But then again, it wasn’t like he really did buy a lot of things. Or leave the dorm. Or the Campus. The only time he left was when he got one of his, well, urges. He decided not to think about this too much right now though. 

Bill quickly caught up to Dipper as they approached the Shack.

“You look nervous, Pine Tree. What’s up with that?” he asked, starting to walk backwards so he could properly look at the young man. Dipper glanced at him, making a face at his antics but then forced himself to smile. Bill could tell he didn’t mean it.

“I’m not nervous... Well, maybe a little. Don’t wanna know what happens when Grunkle Stan hears that you’re wasting our money away by not going to your classes.” he grumbled. 

Bill scoffed. “Well, he doesn’t need to know. if you shut up, then I’ll pretend I’m a good student. I can’t for the life of me figure out why I wanted to study in the first place. But I guess that’ll forever be a mystery, eh?” he said. He took another step backwards and let out a yelp as he fell right on his back, tripping over the stairs leading up to the shack.

Dipper jumped slightly before he started laughing. Well, at least his laughter was nicer than the scowl on his face that never really left. Except for when he was asleep. Not that Bill should be knowing that.

“Better watch your step.” the boy hummed and walked up the stairs past Bill. He rolled his eye but smiled and got back up, wincing at the slight pain in his back. Then the door flew open and he heard a yelp of surprise as Dipper was knocked back by his sister Mabel. Bill could see that she had him in a bear hug, almost suffocating him.

“Now that’s just Karma, Pine Tree.” Bill laughed, catching Mabel’s attention. Apparently she had cut her hair since the last time he had seen her. It was now much shorter, barely reaching her shoulders.

“Looking good there, Shooting Star!” he hummed and winked. For a moment she just stared at him before a grin split her face. She threw her arms around Bill, squeezing a gasp from him as she did so. 

“It’s good to see you both again! So many things happened while you were gone. Dipper you can’t believe what Grunkle Ford and I found in the woods! We-” she suddenly cut herself of, looking at Dipper.

When Bill also turned to look at him he could see the tense expression on his face. He frowned.

“What’d you find, Mabel?” he asked, seemingly interested but the girl shook her head and laughed nervously. What was up with all of them?

“Ah, we found a really cool hidden lake but I forgot that Dipper is not to keen on water.” she said, but Bill didn’t really think that this was the entire truth. But he was not going to interrogate them.

“Sounds neat. You should show me sometime. I’m not scared of water!” he said instead. Before Mabel could answer Dipper already facepalmed.

“I’m not scared of water! Whatever, let’s just get inside and unpacked.” he threw up his arms and stormed through the open door. Bill giggled, but followed him inside, while Mabel closed the door behind them. The place was just as cozy as he remembered. A small kitchen, that somehow still found enough room for five people, a bigger living room that was perfect for movie nights to come and of course the various rooms upstairs. 

“I see you’ve made it in one piece. Welcome back, kiddo.” Grunkle Stan came out of the actual store area, patting Dipper more or less gentle on the back. “Seems like you didn’t get your driving skills from me then.” the old man laughed.

“Well, it was kind of hard not to drive off a cliff with Bill as front passenger!” the boy replied. A hand hit Dipper on the back rather hard as Bill came up behind him.

“Hey there, pal. Next time you can let me drive then!” Bill proposed, earning a collective ‘NO’ from the other three in the room. He vaguely remembered the golf cart incident from the week before they left for college. Soos had said it was beyond repair. 

“Where’s Grunkle Ford?” Dipper asked, sounding like he had a headache.

“Ugh, my brother’s out running some errands.” Stan replied, not really seeming to care. Bill noted that Dipper looked disappointed. 

“Now how about you two go unpack while I make us all some pancakes!” Mabel broke the silence that had formed. Bill immediately lit up. Now that sounded promising enough.

“I gotta go back to work in the Shack, but you kids get settled and something to eat. You can start working tomorrow though. No arguing.” the old man said before excusing himself and walking back into the store, leaving the three of them alone.

“Alright, Bill! You actually get the luxury of deciding where you want to sleep. You can either share the attic with Dippin Dots here or get the couch. We could also set up a tent outside of course but you never know what kind of uh, weather can occur.” Mabel explained, sharing a glance with Dipper. 

“Your choice.” his roommate said, shrugging.

 

**Choice 1: ROOMATES FOR LIFE  
Choice 2: That couch is pretty uncomfy but at least I can observe the house.  
Choice 3: What was that noise outside the tent?!**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please vote for either of the three new options until Wednesday! :D Please include the option number in the comment. Every option will have a different effect on Bill so choose wisely!!


	3. ROOMATES FOR LIFE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Roomates for life won. Holy shit, who would have thought. xD
> 
> At this point I'm just gon say that this fic is NOT predestined to end up with Bill and Dipper getting together!!! Or witht hem even liking each other. It is completely dependant on the choices that you make, so think wisely before just choosing something. c:
> 
> Sorry, this is kind of even shorter than the last. But in this it's more about the decisions than describing a detailed story.

“As nice as that tent sounds I think I’d very much prefer a bed in a sheltered room. Plus that couch looks awfully uncomfortable.” Bill piped up after a moment of thought, almost making both of the twins jump from sudden increase in volume. “Besides, I’m so used to Dip’s snoring now, I’m pretty sure I couldn’t even fall asleep without it.” the blond added, smirking deviously.

Dipper looked less than impressed.

“I don’t snore! If anything you’re the one keeping me awake with your sleep talking.” the young man replied with an indignant huff. He seemed less than thrilled with Bill’s decision, because he just grabbed his bags and started ascending the stairs. Bill frowned in slight confusion before he picked up his own backpack and followed. He could hear Mabel giggling something before she vanished into the kitchen to start working on these promised pancakes.

The floorboards were creaking underneath Bill’s feet when they finally reached the attic. He immediately felt more at home than at the dorm. Throwing his backpack onto the floor, he jumped onto the bed on the right side of the room. Tons of boy band and kitten posters hang above it, showing it to have once been Mabel’s.

Light was filtering through the triangle shaped window between the two beds and the entire atmosphere made a smile appear on Bill’s face. It vanished as quickly as it had come when his eyes fell onto Dipper. He looked around the room almost frantically, seeming to search for something. He appeared to be pretty tense in general. 

“What’s with you? Ever since we got here you’ve been even more of a buzzkill than usual. Do you think i don’t notice how you’re acting around me? What’s your deal?” Bill grumbled, sitting up again and glaring at Dipper.

His roommate turned to look at him. For a split second Bill could see some kind of anger on his face but then it quickly turned into regret. Dipper sighed and his shoulders sagged a little as he relaxed. 

“I’m sorry, I’ve been really on edge lately. Probably still from the whole exam phase. I’m worried about getting bad grades. It’s not helping that you’ve constantly gone out of your way to make learning really hard.” the twin explained, running a hand through his hair. 

Before Bill could reply he also added, “I was also kind of hoping I’d get some room to myself, because so far sharing a room with you has proven to be more stressful than fun, quite frankly.” Well that was honest at least

“To be fair, you’ve never even attempted to make it fun! You shoot down all my invitations of doing something together. Makes it kind of feel like you don’t even want to get to know me. And I mean, I thought we used to be friends? I can’t remember anything but at least I’m trying to make the best of it!” Bill shot back, getting angrier the more he spoke. 

He jumped off the bed and grabbed his backpack, starting to unpack the few things that belonged to him. It was hard to keep his anger under control, easily betrayed by the way his hands were shaking. Dipper was quiet at first, seemingly stumped by that accusation.

“Bill, I’m sorry.” The smaller boy glanced over his shoulder, still looking pretty angry. He felt a little bit better though when he saw that Dipper did actually really look sorry. Letting out a breath, the tight knot of emotions he felt in his stomach loosened a little. 

“I didn’t mean to give you the impression that I don’t care anymore. It’s just been hard for me. I’ve never thought about how you felt. I probably should have done that.” Dipper seemed even more uncomfortable now, probably due to the guilt that must have crept up on him. While this apology still wasn’t the best, Bill let it slide.

“Whatever, Pine Tree.” Bill said, wanting to add something else but before he could do that Dipper interrupted him.

“Please stop calling me that! I know you like funny nicknames and you’ve always called me that ever since we got to college but it’s… it’s making me really uncomfortable, ok?” There was a moment of silence before Bill let the backpack slide back out of his hands and he turned around to fully face Dipper. 

The young man had wrapped his arms around himself, averting his gaze and Bill knew he was not joking around. Not like Dipper would ever joke around.

“I didn’t know that.” Bill deadpanned, oddly serious for once. “I’m sorry, it wasn’t my intention to make you feel bad with that: it just came rather naturally. I don’t know why, I just went along with it. I’ll stop of course.” he shook his head, feeling his cheeks burn in embarrassment. If only Dipper had said something sooner. 

Bill’s eyes widened a bit when he saw that Dipper was actually trying to hold back tears. Now he was completely and utterly confused. Why would Dipper react this strongly over a nickname? Such a stupid one at that? It didn’t even make any sense. 

There were a lot of things that didn’t quite add up with Dipper Pines. Bill felt like the whole ‘we’ve been friends before’ story was either completely false or at least not entirely accurate. He pushed these thoughts away for now, trying to decide what to do. It seemed like Dipper was losing himself more and more in whatever was making him so upset, seeing as his hands had started to shake as well. Bill had to do _something_ before the kid slipped even further away.

**Option 1: “What’s so bad about ‘Pine Tree’ anyway?”  
** **Option 2: Awkward hugs are always a solution, right?**  
**Option 3: Maybe this random book can distract him.**


	4. Awkward hugs are always a solution, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This could have gone way worse tbh.

Words of comfort were never something that came easy to him and he felt that asking about it wouldn’t really help either. He huffed and then walked over to Dipper, throwing his arms around him and pulling him close with a determined expression. To any onlooker that must’ve been a funny sight, since Bill was about half a head shorter than the other boy. Bill could feel Dipper tense up and for a moment he feared he’d made the wrong move.

“What are you doing?” just came the deadpan voice from Dipper, making Bill pull back enough to look at him. He almost had to laugh at the absolutely confused expression on the boy’s face.

“That’s how it works, right? Comfort? I don’t know I’m not sure I’m good at that.” Bill replied, trying to keep his voice lighthearted. 

Dipper blinked, still not seeming to comprehend what Bill was trying to do. Then, after a few moments, he started to laugh. It came out as a giggle at first but grew into real laughter. Now it was Bill’s turn to be confused. 

“Excuse me? Am I really that bad at comforting?” he asked. Although he had to admit that at least Dipper didn’t look like he was about to cry anymore. And his laugh sounded nice. Bill never really got to hear it, since the guy always seemed intent on being mister serious at all times. Now he was holding his stomach with one hand and rubbing at his eyes with the other, shaking his head in the process. 

“No- no! Sorry. It’s just.. I didn’t expect you to try and hug me.” Dipper replied after calming down enough to actually talk again. Bill rolled his eye but felt a smirk tugging at his lips. 

“Can’t have my favourite roommate getting all sad on me. Look, Dipper. I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable all this time. You really should have said something.” Bill said after a moment, frowning a little. Dipper sniffed and rubbed his arm.

“I guess I didn’t think it’d affect me this bad. I have bad memories with this name. I don’t want to go into detail though.” he sighed but at least he looked more relaxed than before. Bill was glad this hadn’t blown out of proportion. 

“Well, communication is the key, P- Dipper. Damnit, now I need a new nickname. But anyways, whatever. I won’t pressure you to tell me.” he shrugged, although he would secretly really really like to know what this was all about. He wasn’t going to try and interrogate Dipper though. He liked the guy more or less and didn’t want to ruin the one chance of having a friend for once. 

Part of him still thought that friendship was overrated and definitely not needed, but he pushed these thoughts far far away. He was about to say something else but Dipper looked over at the door before grinning back at Bill. The blond blinked in surprise this being the first time he was showing this sort of gesture to him without it seeming forced.  
“I think I smell pancakes. Let’s get some food.” the twin hummed and walked past Bill to the door. Bill looked after him for a moment and then quickly followed, hearing his stomach growl at the mention of pancakes. Right, they hadn’t had any breakfast. 

\---

The pancakes were as good as Mabel had promised. Bill especially liked the colored sprinkles she had put on top. Dipper had only rolled his eyes at that, earning a slap on the back of his head. 

After breakfast they finally got to actually unpack their stuff, having Mabel help both of them. Dipper, especially, seemed incapable of folding his clothes right, according to Mabel anyway, and Bill had to hold back laughter more than once at the twin’s bickering. After everything was stowed away well enough they sat down on their beds, Mabel sitting on the floor.

“So do you want to do something? The day is still young! You didn’t plan on spending the whole semester break cooped up in your room, right Dipdop?” Mabel asked, shooting her brother a smirk.

“We’ve just arrived. You can’t blame a guy for wanting to relax a bit!” Dipper shot back, crossing his arms in the process. Bill caught him glancing over at him though. “But I bet Bill is up to do something. He’s always full of energy.” he sighed dramatically.

“Yeah, and you’re always a bore.” Bill hummed, this time he made Mabel laugh. “Well, whether Dipper wants to come or not. We should do something. I’ve waited so long to be back here, so what plans did you have?” he added, directing the question at Mabel.

The girl tapped her chin, seemingly in thought.

“We could do lots of things! Go into the town and meet Candy and Grenda, or go and meet up with Pacifica. We could also go into the woods. I could show you this pond I was talking about earlier.” Mabel hummed. Bill looked at Dipper to search his expression for reactions but he just shrugged.

“Whatever you two decide to do, I’ll stay here. Maybe I can get a bit more sleep, I didn’t get enough of that those past weeks.” he groaned, letting himself fall back on the bed.

“Well, then it looks like it’s just the two of us!” Mabel chimed, grinning at Bill. He nodded. “Works for me!”.

“So what do you want to do, Billy Bop?” she asked, causing Dipper to burst into suppressed laughter again.

**Option 1: Bill: Exploring the woods with Shooting Star!**   
**Option 2: Be Dipper.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Voting 'til wednesday :3c as always


	5. Be Dipper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow that was a really close one!!! :O I personally would have loved both decisions but you decided and now we're going to look what's going on with Dipdop

As soon as Mabel and Bill had left the Shack, Dipper let out a huge sigh of relief. Finally he would get a little time to himself without having to constantly be on edge about what crazy or annoying thing Bill would do next. Life at college was made even harder by having Bill as a roommate and now he had to share his safe space in the Shack with him as well. It was definitely not at all what he had expected when he agreed to ‘be responsible’ for him. 

The young man pushed himself off the bed after five minutes of brooding. While he hadn’t lied when he had said that he was tired, he also didn’t actually want to sleep. There were other things to do while Bill was away and distracted. Hide the journal for example. When Bill had hugged him, which was still a very weird thing to think about, Dipper had noticed the Journal 3 lying right out in the open on the bookshelf. This was definitely not a good spot for it to be. He didn’t even want to imagine what kind of memories this book could trigger within the ex-demon’s mind. 

Dipper grabbed the book and stared at the cover for a few moments, remembering how he had found it and all the adventures he’d gone through thanks to this book, a fond smile crossing his face. Then there was the apocalypse. The smile fell, replaced by a scowl. It was all Bill’s fault, and now he was stuck with the guy that had literally tried to kill him, just because Mabel was way too optimistic. 

He refrained from slamming the door shut as he waltzed out of the room and straight back down the stairs. He knew exactly that his great uncle Ford was not actually out. It only took Dipper a few seconds to punch in the secret code that let the vending machine in the shop swing open and he vanished behind it, being mindful of closing the secret entrance behind him.

His footsteps echoed through the hallway as he descended the staircase until he reached the elevator that would bring him down onto level two. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door that appeared in front of him, the elevator announcing that he reached his destination. Of course he could just open it but Dipper didn’t want to be disrespectful to his grunkle and childhood idol. 

Nowadays he had gotten over his fanboy complex when it came to Stanford and had rather taken upon the student role. A smile spread across his face when the door swung open and Stanford looked at him.

“Ah! I heard you arrived, come in Dipper, come in.” Stanford greeted him and stepped out of the way so Dipper could make his way into his grunkle’s private study. By now, the old decorations and wall tapestries of Bill Cipher’s true form had luckily vanished. This was a part of Stanford’s life that Dipper did not like to think about at all, for more than just the obvious reason. 

“Why didn’t you come to greet us?” the question slipping out of his mouth before he could stop himself. He knew exactly why but he was still somewhat irked about not being greeted personally, for selfish reasons. A sigh came from the older man while he closed the door again.

“You know exactly why, Dipper. I can’t stand to be in his presence.” Stanford replied with a grumble. Biting his lip, Dipper shrugged and held out the book to Stanford.

“I guess. But he’s been kind of excited to see you again and you can’t keep ignoring him because that’s way more suspicious than anything else. Also this was still up in my room, that I’m now sharing with him so it’s best to keep it down here.” the younger man argued, trying not to sound too accusing. He didn’t know why his mood was so flippant today but there wasn’t much he could do about it.

Stanford stared at him for a moment, before reaching out to take the Journal. He walked over to his desk to put it next to the other two. 

“You might be right, but I don’t know if I can pretend to be nice. Seeing him only makes me want to punch him in the face.” Ford huffed, crossing his arms. Dipper couldn’t help but snort a little at that.

“You’d punch a teen? That’s rude. Besides, I have to admit that he’s not that bad. Despite being annoying while I’m trying to focus on studying. I think he really believes our story.” The brunette said, surprising himself by trying to defend Bill. It wasn’t like he did that out of feeling something akin to friendship though. And he definitely wasn’t still thinking about the earlier scene. 

“Has he shown any sign of remembering something?” Ford changed the subject, turning back around to facing Dipper. 

“Not really. He hasn’t mentioned remembering anything at least. Besides I was kind of busy trying not to fail my classes to pay too much attention.” the boy answered. Then he frowned a little and ran a hand through his hair. While Bill never mentioned anything about remembering things there were still some things that seemed out of place.

“There’s something that worries me though, I have to admit that.” Dipper mumbled, catching his grunkle’s attention.

“What is it? If there’s anything that could indicate the return of his memories you need to tell me.” Ford said, walking a bit closer. Dipper didn’t like how aggressive Stanford could be and he had to remind himself that his grunkle had gone through hell and back. He probably wasn’t the most mentally stable person… and he had a gun.

**Option 1: “Sometimes he vanishes in the middle of the night.”**   
**Option 2: “Sometimes he talks in his sleep.”**   
**Option 3: “Nevermind. On second thought it’s not really an issue.”**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, vote for your preferred option c:


	6. "Sometimes he talks in his sleep"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The new episode fucked me up. 
> 
> I just wanted to stress again that most of the events from the show also took place in this story BUT with the difference, that Mabel and Dipper were already older. The apocalypse events took place one year ago in this fic and Dipper is now 22. So there is still a lot of trauma going on but not as terribly much as it would have been when this all happened when they were 12.

“Well, I did notice him talking in his sleep a lot.” Dipper said quickly, eyes flickering back up to meet Stanford’s. He probably should be telling him that Bill sometimes vanished at night, as if the guy wouldn’t notice that Dipper wasn’t actually asleep. But until there was a real reason to worry he didn’t want to put everyone in danger, just because Ford couldn’t control himself as well as he himself could.

The author frowned and ran a hand through his hair. 

“What kind of things does he say? Maybe he remembers in his sleep. It could be entirely possible that he still has access to the mindscape while asleep. We don’t exactly know how well we can actually trap a mind demon in a body.” the older man pointed out, obviously interested in what his student had to say.

The younger man held back a sigh. It was hard to recall everything, since he hadn’t really thought it important to note down every word coming from his roommate's mouth in the middle of the night.

“Well, most of it is normal nonsense. I think he has a very vivid imagination. Nothing he said really indicates that he remembers or that he actually has control over the mindscape, if that helps you.” he grumbled slightly, already annoyed at the persistence of Stanford. 

Sure, Dipper still looked up to his childhood idol, but things had gotten slightly tense between them ever since the whole Bill moving in with Dipper thing happened. He sometimes noticed the slight tension between Mabel and his Grunkle, not liking it one bit. He could tell the family bond was starting to crumble, even though he spent most time at college now. 

“I don’t know why you’re being so defensive, Dipper. It’s almost like you’re trying to protect him.” Ford huffed, clearly not satisfied with the answer.

“Well, he’s my roommate now! Even if I know who he really is, it’s kind of hard to call him a threat when all he does is try to make friends with me.” Dipper ran a hand through his hair in distress. This was clearly not the answer his mentor had wanted to hear, judging from his grim expression.

“This isn’t going to work out. I can’t pretend I trust him. And I still don’t think neither should you. You shouldn’t even toy with the thought of befriending him. But I trust your judgement, Dipper. I’m going to stay down here. You can leave.” Stanford grumbled and turned back to whatever he had been working on, clearly dismissing his apprentice. That was a disheartening thing to hear. Dipper couldn’t even tell if Ford was angry at him now, and he hated the way his uncle always hid his true feelings or intentions. 

“Ugh, fine, but you’re making a mistake!” Dipper hissed, before whirling around and making his way to the elevator again. Ford couldn’t possibly know how to handle this particular situation. He hadn’t been living with Bill for over a year and he didn’t even want to think about the fact that the ex-demon could have changed at least a bit. 

While going back up, Dipper recalled last year’s events when Bill had managed to trick his sister into giving up the dimensional rift to rip open a portal to his nightmare realm. It had been terrifying but they had defeated him in the end. 

The event had clearly left scars on every member of the family. He probably shouldn’t be so hard on Stanford for not wanting to trust Bill, but he needed to make the man see that his behaviour was completely counter productive. 

When he arrived back upstairs, he spotted Stanley behind the shop counter, looking over at him.

“What’s wrong with you, kiddo?” the older man asked with a frown as he saw Dipper’s expression. The boy shook his head and walked over to him, leaning against the counter with a sigh.

“I was hoping for an at least somewhat relaxing summer but I can see that hope is gone with Bill around.” he said, disappointment obvious in his voice.

“What did you expect? Bringing the demon asshole that almost destroyed our family here wasn’t your smartest idea.” Stan replied but then laughed as Dipper buried his face in his hands. The young man could feel the elder’s hand patting him on the shoulder.

“There, there. So far he still seems rather unsuspecting - you should worry less. Worrying makes the situation worse. And if my brother is giving you a hard time because of this whole situation you should probably try to stay away from him for a while. Living in a constant state of concern isn’t good for your health.” for some reason Stan’s words helped calm him down a little and Dipper managed to relax with a nod.

“Maybe I should give him a try.” he mumbled.

“Who now?” Stan, who had retracted his hand again, asked.

“Bill. He’s been nothing but friendly, more or less. I feel bad for even entertaining the thought of becoming his friend but I also feel bad about being an asshole to someone who objectively didn’t harm me. Ever since we erased his memory it’s as if he’s a completely different person. Still a loudmouth, and still annoying, but not as downright evil as he used to be. Sometimes he even mentions us in his sleep and I don’t think it was with any bad intent...but Grunkle Ford would be so disappointed.” Dipper rambled, turning to look at his other grunkle.

Stanley looked thoughtful for a moment and then shrugged.

“Well, everyone deserves a second chance. Maybe even a tyrannical evil triangle demon.” he chuckled. Dipper smiled a bit. Although he had found an excellent teacher and friend in Ford, he still appreciated the laid-backness of his other Grunkle. Both of them were a good balance for him, since they had very different approaches to problems.

“Yeah, I guess. Thanks, Grunkle Stan.” Dipper smiled, pushing away from the counter.

“Whatever. Don’t forget that you’re starting work tomorrow early!” the old man called after him, as he left the Shack. Dipper laughed quietly to himself, rolling his eyes. 

**Option 1: Dipper: Follow Mabel and Bill.**   
**Option 2: Dipper: Go back to your room.**   
**Option 3: Bill: Adventure with Mabel.**


	7. Dipper: Follow Mabel and Bill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long! I've had a lot of stress last week and I will definitely continue to be stressed now that Nanowrimo began! I will try to update regularly but please understand if i can't! Thanks and enjoy this chapter!

Dipper looked over at the edge of the forest and felt the sudden urge to follow Mabel and Bill to see whatever cool thing they’d found here. His irritation with Stanford, as well as Bill had started to abate and Stan’s advice had certainly helped. Maybe he should try to warm up to the ex-demon after all. As crazy as this idea sounded, it might just be the right thing to do, despite what his mentor said.

As he went along the path into the forest his thoughts inevitably went back to last year. Weirdmageddon was not something one could simply forget. It had left pretty much everyone kind of traumatised. They had done their best to restore the town to it’s former self, but no one here would ever be the same again, that included the pines. Going to college directly after witnessing the end of the world had been even weirder and Dipper had to say he was proud of himself for not freaking out completely, especially given he had to live with the person that caused all of this trouble.

The wind made the trees sway a little, while the scent of summer filled Dipper with new determination and at least some sense of happiness. He knew he could use it. 

Finding his sister and Bill proved to be harder than he had thought and he groaned after twenty minutes of walking. Dipper knew this forest like no one else, except maybe Ford. He was about to give up and turn back when he heard laughter in the distance. He identified the voice as his sister’s and his spirits lifted again, running towards the sound. It was now that it hit him how much he had actually missed her.

Soon a small clearing that, to his surprise, he didn’t actually know yet, to his surprise, came into view and he hid behind a tree to see what Bill and Mabel were up to. He knew he shouldn’t be spying but he was too curious for his own good. 

The first thing he noticed was the large pond in the middle of the clearing, with water that seemed to be emitting a strange glow, like some kind of lightsource was at the bottom of it. It piqued his interest but not enough to make him reveal his position.

“What do you think is down there?” Mabel asked Bill as they both knelt next to the water’s edge, peering inside.

“How am I supposed to know that? It’s definitely something strange, that’s for sure! Maybe something paranormal.” he snorted, shoving Mabel a little playfully.

The girl snorted, shoving him back.

“That’s for sure, sherlock. You’re just as smart as Dipper, I’m so impressed.” she said sarcastically and Dipper huffed to himself.

“Oh please. No one is as smart as Pi- I mean Dipper. Well, maybe I am but I wouldn’t boast about it as much as he does. You should see him at college. Sometimes he talks to himself about how well he solved a problem. It’s ridiculous.” Bill laughed, rolling his eye.

Ok that actually hurt Dipper a little. He wasn’t that self-centered, was he? He didn’t get to contemplate it any further because Bill spoke again.

“I just wish he would relax a bit now and then. He always seems tense around me and I don’t know why. Well, all of you do. Do you honestly think I don’t notice?” he said, suddenly looking rather serious and Mabel sighed, leaning back a bit.

She looked conflicted and it dawned on Dipper that she might say something she shouldn’t. He couldn’t let her.

“Hey, I can relax! It’s just that college is really important and your idea of fun is mostly just crazy or downright dangerous!” he exclaimed, walking into the clearing. Bill and Mabel turned around to look at him in surprise. While Mabel looked a little flustered, Bill just frowned.

“Were you spying on us? That’s rude.” the blond said, making Dipper’s face turn red in embarrassment.

“I wasn’t spying!” he lied. “I just decided I did want to hang out with you and simply overheard you.” the young man tried to defend himself. Mabel, who had been awkwardly playing with her hair, suddenly jumped up. She gripped Bill’s arm, pulling him up as well, to which he just yelped before staring at her.

“See! He’s not avoiding you. Neither of us are.” Mabel chimed, smiling brightly. No one could withstand her charm, Dipper knew that. And surely enough Bill relaxed and smirked back at her.

“Yeah sure. Whatever you’re both hiding I’ll find out sooner or later.” he said mockingly but otherwise it seemed that he wasn’t worrying as much about it anymore. The promise of him finding out the truth still sent a shiver down Dipper’s spine. 

He had to admire Mabel’s friendliness towards the demon though. After all he had not only tricked her into setting him free but also imprisoned her for a while. And yet, she still seemed to care. Dipper had no doubt though that she would kick the ex-demon’s ass back into the multiverse if he’d act up. The thought made him laugh and he walked over to both of them.

“You can try but we’re very good at keeping secrets. Besides there’s really nothing you need to worry about. You’re almost as paranoid as me, dude” Dipper said, patting Bill on the back. 

The shorter man looked up at him, surprise clear in his eyes. Then he grinned.

“No one can be as paranoid as you, Dip.” he hummed.

Dipper didn’t know why, but seeing the demon smile warmed his heart. Maybe befriending him _was_ the only way to prevent a catastrophe. Everyone deserved a second chance, right?

The three of them spent the rest of the day exploring the woods and making plans to come back to the weird pond - to figure out what was the cause of the weird glow - before returning back to the shack in the evening. They had Dinner with Stanley, while Stanford still refused to come upstairs, a fact which irritated Dipper more than he was willing to admit. 

They finished the day with a series marathon of ducktective before finally going to bed. Bill almost passed out immediately, while Dipper still lay awake for a while.

He woke up in the middle of the night and saw the silhouette of Bill, climbing out of bed in the dark. His heart stopped for a moment. Was he awake? Or was he sleepwalking?

**Option 1: See if he’s awake. Call his name.**   
**Option 2: Pretend to be asleep and then follow him.**


	8. Pretend to be asleep and then follow him.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, I'd sa ythat was actually the first 'wrong' choice. Although there are no WRONG choices. Only painful ones. Have fun.

Dipper didn’t dare to move or make a sound. He knew he was being sneaky, especially after Bill had not been too happy about being spied on earlier, but he just couldn’t get himself to say something. Despite wanting to try and be his friend, he was still overly paranoid about the ex-dream demon, and the subject of trust could not even be thought about yet. Was Bill even awake? Maybe he was sleepwalking. 

He heard the door creak open as Bill left the room. After waiting a few agonizingly long moments, Dipper slipped out of his bed as well, following the demon as quietly as possible. He knew exactly which floorboards were the creaky ones and knew how to avoid them. Bill led him downstairs and Dipper had to pause at the edge of the staircase because the blond boy was just standing in the middle of the hallway now. It seemed like he was contemplating something. 

Dipper held his breath and watched, with a sinking feeling in his stomach, how Bill turned to walk into the gift shop. A dreadful suspicion crept up on him and he quickly followed the other. He hid behind the door and watched as Bill walked over to the vending machine, standing in front of it. Dipper could not make out his face in the darkness of the room and it made him anxious. His heart beat drastically in his chest and cold sweat started to form on his skin. He hated himself a little for still reacting so badly. His stomach almost flipped over when Bill reached out to punch in the numbers of the code. 

“Stop!” Dipper yelled before sprinting over to Bill and toppling him over, pinning his wrists above his head to the floor and straddling him with his legs. He felt like he was going to be sick. 

“What are you doing?!” he screamed again, tears forming in his eyes. One hundred different scenarios played out in his head all at once, mixed with memories of weirdmageddon and he dug his nails harder into Bill’s wrists.

“D-Dipper?” Bill’s voice was trembling slightly and after blinking away some tears, that made his vision fuzzy, he could finally make out the other’s face. There was no trace of the yellow scleras with the reptile like irises. Only bright blue eyes that stared at him in shock.

“I just.. I was thirsty and wanted to get something to drink from the vending machine. What’s wrong with you?” Bill said, sounding hurt at first but there was also an underlying trace of anger. “You’re hurting me.” Bill added, biting his lip.

Shame washed over Dipper in hot and cold waves as he released the other’s arms. He felt his blood run cold and his hands were trembling. He wanted to speak but his throat felt dry.

“I’m- I’m so sorry.” he eventually croaked out, but still wasn’t able to move. Bill did it for him.

The other man pushed himself up onto his elbows before showing Dipper off of him, who landed on his side on the wooden floor. He gasped as the air was knocked out of his lungs.  
“I don’t know what’s wrong with you but you should probably get that checked out!” Bill hissed at him before storming off, back upstairs. Dipper couldn’t move. It was almost as if he was paralyzed by the anxiety. But he needed to get up. he needed to explain himself or else everything was ruined. He was actually quite surprised that no one had woken up from what had been going down.

Dipper finally managed to get off the ground and stumbled up the stairs, bursting into their shared room. Bill was lying on his side, back turned towards Dipper. He looked like he was curled up on himself.

“Bill, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you!” Dipper started, still feeling like every word was ripped from his throat rather than spoken freely.

“Shut up. Leave me alone.” Bill just snarled back, pulling the blanket completely over himself. Dipper’s heart sank. Now he made Bill feel awful even though he had done nothing wrong. This was the weirdest thought he’d ever had.

“No. No I won’t.” Dipper replied stubbornly, making his way over to the other’s bed. “At least let me explain.” he tried again.

“But you’re not. You’re just going to tell me another lie. Like you always do. You’re a bad liar, _Pine Tree._ ” Bill growled, pronouncing the wretched nickname on purpose. The words stabbed him like a blade.

“Please don’t. Don’t do this. I’m already fucked up.” Dipper winced, falling to his knees beside the other’s bed. Now he was pleading to the one person that once before, would have loved to see him suffer like this. But was this Bill still the same one? He should be. But he was not. And that what made it so incredibly hard.

At first there was no response but then Bill sat up, pushing the blanket away. He stared down at Dipper and the brunette could see that Bill was crying. “Why do you hate me?” Bill asked, his voice surprisingly steady for someone who had tears streaming down their cheeks.

“I don’t-” Dipper stopped himself. He did hate Bill. He hated him so much. But this was not the Bill his hatred was targeted at. 

“I don’t hate you. I really don’t. It’s just. It’s complicated. I can’t tell you, even if I wanted to. Which I don’t.” he stammered, not able to meet the other’s eyes. He could feel his own eyes getting wet again, his heart still thumping up into his throat.

Bill was silent for a while. It made Dipper feel uneasy.

“It’s because of the door. Something’s behind there. Something terrible.” the other one muttered after what felt like an eternity.

Anxiety made way for confusion and Dipper looked back up at Bill who had now pulled his knees to his chest. He was staring at the wall, absentmindedly. 

“Door? What door? What do you mean?” Dipper asked, daring to get back up and sit down on the edge of Bill’s bed. Bill didn’t move.

“The door in my dreams. It is hidden inside the shack. There’s a lock on there but I know I could open it if I tried hard enough. I don’t want to. It’s freaking me out.” Bill explained, his voice sounding strained. Dipper could only imagine what this meant. They had literally sealed the dream demon away inside his own mind. And he was trying to get out. 

Without thinking much about it, Dipper reached out to pull Bill into a hug. The other one tensed up but didn’t fight it. 

“Don’t. Don’t open the door.” Dipper whispered and blinked when Bill’s arms wrapped around him, unsure at first. The unease in his heart vanished and he let out the deep breath he’d been holding.

“We’re not done with this, Dipper.” Bill mumbled, but he sounded more tired than anything else. 

“I know. Let’s just… Let’s go back to sleep.” he carefully suggested, trying to pull away, but Bill’s hands only gripped his shirt more tightly.

“Don’t leave. You owe me. Don’t leave me alone again.” Bill mumbled and Dipper wondered where that was coming from.

 

**Option 1: Stay**   
**Option 2: Leave**


	9. Stay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, first of all, sorry for taking so long to update! Nanowrimo had me writing so much, I could not concentrate on other side projects. But now I hope we're back on track for regular updates! :D

After a moment of hesitation, Dipper let out a soft sigh and relaxed in Bill’s grip. It looked like he wasn’t going to get back to his own bed tonight. It was still odd that Bill requested him to stay but he couldn’t help and feel bad. Bad for riling the other up like this. 

“It’s ok. It’s fine. I’m not going anywhere.” Dipper murmured, patting Bill’s back a little awkwardly. He was still not entirely comfortable with having the demon cling to him, but his guilt was stronger than his discomfort. Hadn’t he just today thought about giving Bill a chance? And then he had went off on him like a paranoid jackass, accusing him of something he didn’t even do.

He hadn’t even noticed Bill relaxing in his arms, due to being so deep in thought. Now the other’s head was leaning against his chest and he could feel and hear him breath evenly. Had he already fallen back asleep?

“Thanks.” Bill’s answer came out of the blue. At least that confirmed that he was still awake. Dipper nodded before placing his hands on Bill’s shoulders, gently pushing him away in an attempt to get him to lie down.

“Come on, Bill. Let’s sleep.” he said. The blond looked up at him but then nodded, lying down on his back. He stared at the ceiling and for a moment Dipper looked over to his own bed almost longingly. Then he huffed and lay down beside Bill. The bed wasn’t very big so he was forced to lie on his side between Bill and the wall. He decided to actually face the demon, to make sure he wasn’t leaving again. To his surprise Bill rolled onto his side to face him as well.

Dipper could feel his face heat up, fully realizing his situation and he swallowed a bit. 

“I’m not sure I can go back to sleeping.” Bill said, making Dipper frown. 

“Why not?” he asked, sounding rightfully confused. 

“Because.. my dreams are scaring me. They don’t usually work like this.” Bill said cryptically. Dipper couldn’t see him very well in the dark but he thought he could make out a frown.

“You’re making no sense, Bill.” Dipper grumbled, rubbing his eyes. Sleep was tugging at him, especially now that he was lying back down.

“Oh right. I never told you I could control my dreams, did I?” Bill said. That statement woke Dipper up again. 

“Control your dreams? You mean, like lucid dreaming?” he asked curiously.

“Yeah, I guess. Just taken a step further. Whenever I fall asleep I actually land in the same town every time. The entire world is grey but I can completely shape and form it how I want to. Most of the time I just create an entirely new world to go on adventures or ruin some imaginary people’s lives for fun. But in the past days I couldn’t do that anymore. I’m stuck in my town and I feel like something is calling me to go through this hidden door I found. But it’s pitch black and it is making me feel sick.” Bill said hastily, almost too fast for Dipper to catch everything. What he did catch though sent shivers down his spine. Perhaps Bill had found a way to break through again? It was very concerning.

In some kind of impulse reaction Dipper reached out to grab Bill’s hands, making the other look at him in surprise as far as he could tell.

“Like I said before. Don’t go through the door. I will help you figure out what it all means but you have to listen to your instinct. You cannot avoid sleeping though.” He said urgently.

Bill seemed to be biting his lip. Then Dipper felt the other lace their fingers, making him frown.

“Sure. If you say so.” was all Bill said before closing his eyes. His hands did not let go of Dipper’s. What had he gotten himself into? A part of him wanted to pull his hands away but there was another part of him that actually didn’t mind too much. And the latter one was stronger. He was too tired to overthink this now and just opted to close his eyes. He was asleep within moments.

When he opened his eyes again he was not in his room. Instead he was in a monochromatic grayscale world that seemed to be the forest surrounding Gravity Falls. He made a face. How had he gotten into the mindscape? He still remembered this world, but he could not for the life of him explain how he had gotten there now. 

Dipper scratched his head before starting to walk, trying to figure out where he was. It didn’t take too long to run into someone. Well, Bill ran into him, literally. There was just a flash of bright yellow and then Dipper got knocked over, falling onto his back.

“Oof, what the fuck?” he groaned, rubbing the back of his head as he pushed himself up on his elbows.

“Pi- Dipper? What are you doing here? I didn’t make you up this time.” Bill said, sounding rather confused now. 

“What the hell do you mean?” Dipper asked, getting on his feet again and dusting himself off. He narrowed his eyes at Bill. He didn’t look much different from the waking world. Well, except for the fact that he had wings and sharper fang-like teeth now. 

“I mean, sapling, that we’re dreaming and you seem to have found your way into my dream world that I was telling you about before we fell asleep. I don’t really know how that could happen though.” The boy in front of him huffed, hovering a little to appear taller.

“Sapling? That’s new. Not sure if I like it.” Dipper commented, making a face at the new nickname. Still better than Pine Tree though. It seemed that it was a universal constant for Bill to come up with dumb nicknames.  
“But you’re right. That is weird. I know that there is a way for people to share dreams, but that usually requires trust and a rather good bond. Which I do not think we have yet.” Dipper explained, a little dumbfounded.

Bill made a face.  
“We could be but you’re making it really hard.” he said, sounding almost offended.

Dipper did not know how to respond to that. Instead he just shook his head, changing the subject.

“I guess. But what’s more important is, how do I get out of here? I mean it is your mindscape. I just wanted a good rest and now I’m stuck here.” he complained. For a moment it seemed like Bill was starting to get angry but then he forced himself to calm down.

“Well, I didn’t ask you to come! But we can still have some fun, unless you decide to be a killjoy. We can do anything, well, as long as we stick to the town. Have a little bit of fun for once, Dipper.” he sighed, giving him a smile.

Dipper tapped his chin, trying to decide what to do.

 

**Option 1: Stay focused on waking up**  
**Option 2: Give in. Have some fun.**


	10. Give in. Have some fun.

Dipper was apprehensive for another few moments before letting out a sigh, shoulders slumping. This was a dream after all, even if it was a shared dream. What could go wrong? Maybe he did need to have some fun.

“Alright, fine. What’s your idea of entertainment then, huh?” The brunette asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. He put his hands on his hips expectantly.

Bill blinked before a grin spread across his face and he landed on the floor in front of Dipper, wings evaporating into thin air. Bill rubbed his hands and Dipper started to regret his choice, but decided to forget about his worries. He needed to trust Bill. he couldn’t let himself become as paranoid as his great uncle. 

“There’s tons of things we could do! I wonder if you have any dream power in here too; technically you should. Just because it’s not your mind doesn’t mean you don’t have imaginary power in the dream realm.” Bill stated. Dipper made a face. 

“How do you know so much about dreams? I mean, there’s a lot of studies out there but I’ve never actually seen you do any sort of studying at all.” Dipper pointed out.

“That’s because you never pay attention to me, only your dumb work. But no hard feelings. You can make up for it. How about something like this?” Bill huffed before snapping his fingers. Dipper let out a surprised yelp when he felt his body change and when he looked down on himself he noticed that he’d transformed into some form of centaur. Bill was laughing like a madman, while Dipper had a hard time staying upright. 

“A cervitaur?! Are you for real?” Dipper groaned, trying to take a step and instead landing flat on his face. Remembering that he was in the mindscape, a snap of his fingers had him back to normal, with Bill still floating in front of him, laughing. 

“That was hilarious!” the blonde chimed. 

“I’ll show you hilarious, you jerk.” Dipper grumbled before concentrating on the next best thing he could think of. Before Bill knew what happened, he fell out of the air, now equipped with a golden fish-tail, like a mermaid of some sort. Before he landed on the ground though, Dipper caught him. Dream or not, he didn’t actually want to hurt the other. 

Bill had stopped laughing and instead eyed his new form. Dipper had hoped to annoy him with it but instead Bill smirked up at him, a golden glow to his eyes.

“Not bad, little tree!” he chimed, resting one of his arms on Dipper’s shoulder. Dipper felt heat rise to his cheeks when Bill’s face leaned in closer and he dropped him afterall. Bill was a quick thinker though and transformed back into a human with wings before he hit the ground. Dipper took a step back. It was odd seeing bill like this but he was also relieved that he didn’t choose any other forms.

“By the way, what did you mean earlier with ‘I didn’t make you up this time?’” Dipper asked as Bill was about to open his mouth. This made the other’s smile falter a bit and he looked almost embarrassed, eyes darting to the side.

“Well, obviously what I said! You were being no fun in real life, so I made you more fun in my dreams. It gets boring if you have no friends whatsoever, you know.” he replied after a moment, crossing his arms.

“You made a dream version of me? Wow, that’s fucked up. I’m kinkshaming that.” Dipper chuckled. Bill stared at him, face turning just the slightest bit redder before he laughed it off.

“You can’t shame the shameless, Pines!” he exclaimed. Bill suddenly grabbed Dipper’s arm and pulled him up into the air. Dipper yelped in reflex, clinging onto the ex-demon. He forgot, just for a few seconds, that he could probably fly just fine on his own. When he remembered he loosened his grip and just looked down. His eyes widened when he saw that the dream town Bill had spoken off, was Gravity Falls. He really shouldn’t be so surprised by that but it still made him shudder a little. 

“Where are we going?” he asked with a huff. 

“There!” Bill said, pointing upward. Dipper moved his head, sucking in a harsh breath. Above the town still hovered the fearamid, Bill’s makeshift castle that he’d created during weirdmageddon. There was no sign of the open rift though, it was just the floating pyramid.

“Wh-What’s this?” he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

“It’s my favourite place here, mostly because it stands out so much. It’s been here ever since I remember, although it doesn’t seem to fit with the rest. But isn’t it rad? Just this giant floating structure. Plus it seems to house a lot of different things. There are doors all over the place but most of them are sealed shut.” Bill hummed as they landed at a small entrance. Bill let go of Dipper’s arm, confidentially walking inside. Dipper cast one last glance outside before following him.

A personal place with many doors? Dipper had an idea of what this was doing here. He quickly caught up to Bill, who was starting to walk down a corridor. The human tried not to glance at the throne that stood in the far corner of the entrance hall.

“Bill, wait.” Dipper huffed, reaching out to grab the other’s hand. Bill frowned, turning around to look at Dipper.

“You don’t need to be scared. There’s nothing threatening here.” Bill said confused and Dipper almost had to laugh bitterly at the irony of this. He wasn’t really scared, but this place was bringing back memories that he never wanted to see again.

“I’m not-. I just don’t think we should stay here. Outside seems more interesting to me.” he tried to explain. He felt Bill’s hand squeeze his while the blond shrugged.

“No, I want to show you the door. You said you could help me figure it out. It’s farther down in the deeper parts of the structure, but like I said. Almost all doors are shut tight. There are no monsters here either, unless I want them to be.” Bill explained.

“I thought we wanted to have some fun. This seems more like serious business.” Dipper explained. He looked down at their hands, which were still holding each other. He remembered falling asleep like this. He could picture Bill’s sleeping face next to him and bit his lip a little.

“Come on. Let’s do something else. We’ve got a whole dream realm to play around with. Let’s not worry about the door for now.” he almost pleaded, this time he was the one that laced their fingers together. This seemed to get to Bill. The boy looked over his shoulder down the corridor now seemingly conflicted.

 

**Option 1: Bill: Insist on looking at the door.**   
**Option 2: Bill: Wake up.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're switching to Bill's POV next chapter.


	11. Bill: Wake up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry for the delay! I was sick those past days and couldn't really get anything done.

Dipper seemed very intent on dragging Bill back outside. The blond didn’t exactly know what to do. So he decided not to decide. He pulled his hand away from Dipper and before the other could protest he closed his eyes forcing himself awake. This was another thing he had complete control over. He could not only manipulate his dream world however he wanted, no, he could also choose to wake up at any point in the dream.

He heard Dipper gasp next to him, figuring he must’ve caused a shock dream for him. The faintest glow of sunlight passed through the window, the sky still a light purple as dawn was approaching. He knew that they were still holding hands, because Dipper’s nail pressed into his skin making him suck in air between his teeth.

“What happened?” Dipper asked in the dim light of the room and Bill glanced over at him. 

“I woke us up. I decided I don’t want you in my dreams. They’re MY space.” Bill huffed, once again removing his hand from the other’s. He sat up and stared out of the window idly watching the tip of the pines sway in a light breeze. Covers shifted and Dipper leaned against him. The urge to move away was there but he decided not to. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you again.” the brunette sighed after a moment of silence. Bill didn’t respond. He kept staring outside.

“I know you’re already mistrusting me and I can understand why. I’ve been terrible to you. But I want to make up for it. I truly do. It takes two people to establish a relationship though.” Dipper continued. Bill finally moved to look at him.

“I’ve tried! But you’re either cagey or weird about everything! Plus you’re paranoid and seem to have some kind of problem with me that I can’t explain because I don’t remember!” he grumbled. To his surprise Dipper didn’t flinch away as he had expected. Instead the taller man wrapped his arm around his shoulder. Bill swallowed.

“I know. I know you’ve tried before and I was a dick then. But that’s what I want to change. But I’m not ready to look at this door of yours yet. Can we please start small? Let’s do something together. Doesn’t matter if in real life or in dreams. Didn’t we have fun in the forest yesterday?” Dipper asked. Bill wanted to stay angry but he had to admit Dipper was trying hard and who was he not to give him another chance? This was totally not because he had a certain admiration for the boy with the unhealthy obsession of the supernatural, that went beyond just platonic feelings. Nope.

“Fine, fine! Let’s go search for some more monsters then, you dumbass.” Bill exclaimed, pushing Dipper lightly. The other boy laughed, returning the playful shove. 

“That’s better. But how about we wait until the sun is actually up? Thanks to you I missed more sleep than I usually do.” Dipper complained. Bill snorted, rolling his eye.  
“Go back to sleep then.” he replied. Dipper did as he was told and soon enough they had both fallen back asleep for the second time that night.

\---

“Where exactly are we even going, Starboy?” Bill asked after they had been walking through the undergrowth for about half an hour. Dipper had been pretty mysterious about the whole thing, annoying the hell out of Bill. The blond guy didn’t really like not knowing what Dipper was thinking. Especially when they were walking through potentially dangerous areas.

“That’s a surprise, jeez. Don’t be so uptight.” Dipper grumbled in front of him. They had passed the strange pond from yesterday not too long ago and were now heading into a more rocky terrain, leading up a mountain. 

“Me? Uptight?! Funny that you would say that.” Bill shot back, picking up his pace to pass Dipper up the trail. He almost tripped but managed to catch himself before he crashed into the next best tree. He could hear Dipper laughing as he caught back up to him. 

“And here I thought you’d be more careful.” the boy giggled while Bill blushed a bit in embarrassment. 

“Shut up, you know I don’t have any depth perception.” Bill muttered angrily. 

“Yeah, that’s exactly why!” Dipper hummed back before offering his hand to Bill. Bill stared at it for a moment but then refused and wandered past Dipper, past a few rocks lying on the ground. Dipper huffed but didn’t comment on it. Bill absolutely did not want to appear as some kind of clumsy loser that didn’t know how to handle himself. 

“How far do we have to go? I’m getting sick of this.” he broke the uncomfortable silence that had befallen them after another fifteen minutes.

“We’re almost there.” Dipper replied with a shrug. And just as he said that they reached a pretty open plateau, from which they could overlook the entire area. The town lay below them and they could even see the Mystery Shack through the tips of the trees. Bill smirked, the sight reminding him of his dreamscape when he looked from his floating Pyramid over his own little kingdom.

“We could rule together.” he mused jokingly. He noticed Dipper staring at him with an expression that was a mix of discomfort and feigned amusement. 

“I’m just kidding.” he added quickly, his confusion returning. But only for a little while. He hadn’t noticed the entrance to a cave behind them while staring at the wonderful view before them. It got hard to ignore though when he started hearing a low growl, that turned into a rather terrifying noise of some kind of animal. He spun around, staring at the pitch black entrance to the cave, eyes wide. Dipper turned around as well, not even half as surprised as him.

Bill could hear pawsteps resounding from the inside of the cave and claws clicking against the rocky ground. His heartbeat quickened and he quickly tried to decide what to do.

**Option 1: Grab your boy and run!**   
**Option 2: Stay and see what will happen.**


	12. Stay and see what will happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyy, sorry sorry for taking so long again! New years and uni stuff has been piling up, as well as animation projects I need to work on! Sorry for the delay.

Although he desperately wanted to just make a run for it he couldn’t ignore the fact that Dipper didn’t seem phased at all. From what he had gathered about him, Dipper would usually be the first one to panic in any sign of danger- at least know when it was time to run. Instead he looked rather relaxed and even a bit amused by Bill’s nervousness. So he decided to stay. He couldn’t give Dipper the satisfaction of running away when there was absolutely no danger at all.

“If you’re going to get us killed I will haunt you in the afterlife.” Bill huffed, still looking tense as he watched the mouth of the cave. Dipper laughed and shook his head.

“No, it’s fine. This is a friend of mine.” he explained just as the silhouette of a creature stepped into view. Bill squinted, trying to make out what exactly it was. Then he gasped as the animal stepped into the sunlight. It was a bear. But it’s entire body was covered in, well, more bear heads. Clearly a mutation of some sort and more terrifying than any other mutation Bill had seen before. But he was intrigued. Grotesque things like these had always been interesting to him after all.

“Your FRIEND? Of course a giant mutated bear would be one of your only friends you weirdo!” Bill exclaimed, staring at Dipper.

“Hey, that’s rude!” Dipper huffed back and a growl came from the bear. It wasn’t just one growl but sounded slightly distorted and had some kind of echo, since more than just one head was growling at the same time.

“Who is that, Dipper Pines?” the voice startled Bill once again. his head snapped back around to face the animal. Apparently this bear also possessed the ability to speak like a human. His voice was rough and deep, with the same echo-y sound he’d noticed before. Some of the bear's eyes were locked onto him, apparently evaluating whether he was friend or foe. Bill even imagined he some some kind of recognition in the animal’s eyes, which made next to no sense and he explained it with him probably going a bit nuts.

“That’s my friend Bill, Multibear. He’s harmless.” Dipper replied and started walking towards the bear. Bill noticed that the boy was moving between him and the animal and wondered if he’d done that on purpose.

“Harmless? Are you sure about that, Dipper?” the bear grumbled, looking past the man. Bill could see his claws flex and scratch at the ground. There was still something hostile about the bear’s behaviour but Bill decided that he’d not let it show that he was scared. Instead he straightened and followed Dipper quickly, a determined expression on his face.  
“What would I be able to do to a beast like you?” Bill pointed out, holding the Multibear’s gaze. The creature huffed, while Dipper rolled his eyes.

“Don’t be like that. Really, Bill’s fine. Just a little quick to open his mouth.” the brunette excused. Multibear seemed unconvinced but after a tense moment he nodded his main head and turned back to look at Dipper, ignoring the blond again. Bill crossed his arms and bit his lip to keep himself from blurting something out.

“Well, you know I trust you, Dipper Pines. What brings you here anyways?” the bear asked and Dipper seemed to relax immediately.

“I just wanted to visit and show Bill around. He’s lost all of his memories and needs to settle in somewhere in life and I’m trying to help.” Dipper explained with a shrug. Now it was Bill’s turn to roll his eyes. This sounded like he was some kind of helpless loser. 

“You know, Dipper, I’m FINE.” he protested and Dipper sighed, looking over at him.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean that in a bad way. I’m just trying to explain!” the other man replied, a hint of annoyance in his tone. 

“In all honesty,” Bill said, turning towards the Multibear, “I just want to spend some time with Star Child here, who is too oblivious for his own good. Yes, I might’ve lost my memory but that doesn’t mean I’m not settled into life. Especially, considering that I’m talking to like 15 bear heads right now without losing my shit.” he said, a smirk on his face. The bear flicked a few of his ears.

“What the hell do you mean, I’m too oblivious?” Dipper chimed in, now fully irritated but Bill had no intention of answering this question. This whole situation was just starting to go into the wrong direction again. Why couldn’t they go a few minutes without getting on each other’s nerves? Why DID Bill even LIKE him?

“I can sense a lot of unresolved tension here. Maybe you should try to figure this out first before you do any other activity that relies on trust and mutual respect.” the bear huffed, directing his harsh words at both of them. 

“And how would we do that?” Dipper asked while Bill crossed his arms.

“You could spar. You know, that’s how the manotaurs and I do it nowadays whenever there’s tension growing. There’s nothing better than a good natured fight.” the bear chuckled. Dipper made a face and Bill laughed hysterically.

“You want us to beat each other up?!” the blond asked, still laughing. 

“Yes, that’s what I’m saying.” the bear nodded solemnly. 

“Oh man. Fight me, star child! I’m so ready to kick your ass!” Bill chuckled, turning towards Dipper, fists raised mockingly.

“I’m not fighting you, Bill! We’re not bears or manotaurs, this is stupid.” the taller man replied annoyed.

“You’re just scared.” Bill replied with a condescending smirk.

“Yeah, scared of messing you up too much.” Dipper shot back with a glare.

“What, are you saying I’m weak?” Bill huffed and narrowed his eyes.

“Well, you’re tiny and you have next to no training.” Dipper pointed out and rolled his eyes.

The multibear watched the whole thing, his gaze wandering from Bill to Dipper and back again.

“You don’t need to be so condescending, I know well enough what I can and can’t do!” Bill replied, anger bubbling up inside him again. He hated this so much. “I know you secretly want to punch me, don’t you? There’s something you know about me that just makes you uncomfortable around me. And possibly angry, doesn’t it?” he added.

Dipper looked taken aback and then guilt took over his facial features. “I still don’t want to punch you!” he protested weakly.

“Just do it, if it makes you feel better! I’m getting honestly quite sick of walking on eggshells around you and I don’t know how much longer I can do this. I’ll just hang out with shooting star instead!” Bill spat. Dipper looked conflicted and Bill started feel a little bit bad about being too pushy but he just couldn’t help it anymore.

“This won’t make me feel better! This will only make me feel worse! There’s so much you don’t understand about this situation and that I absolutely cannot tell you because then Ford’s going to kill-” Dipper bit his tongue and his face blanched.

“Kill who? Me? Why?!” Bill asked, hands balled to fists. The multibear walked up to Dipper and nudged his shoulder. 

“Secrets will only make things worse, you know. Especially if you’re as bad at keeping them as you are.” the creature grumbled.

“I can’t-” Dipper tried to reply but he seemed to be close to tears again, not being able to finish the sentence.

**Option 1: Dipper: Tell the truth**   
**Option 2: Dipper: Stall for more time**


	13. Dipper: Tell the truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is relatively short but I hope you'll enjoy it anyways!
> 
> Also big thanks for my new beta reader [emberglows](http://www.emberglows.tumblr.com) !!

“Dipper Pines, you better tell me what the hell you’re hiding right now or this will have consequences!” Bill hissed, making Dipper flinch. His throat was still dry, but he took a deep breath anyways.

“He will kill you because you’re a dangerous demon that tried to murder our entire family, Bill!! It’s only thanks to Mabel that he didn’t in the first place,” Dipper finally yelled. Birds rushed out of the trees nearby with loud squawking noises but otherwise time seemed to come to a halt. Dipper heard the multibear grunt next to him, but Bill just stared at him. 

Blood rushed in his ears and he felt his heart sink as he realized what he had just done. Ford would kill both of them now. 

“You’re lying. This doesn’t make any sense. How the fuck am I supposed to be a demon?” Bill finally spoke, eyes narrowing. He seemed oddly calm, but that was probably just because he didn’t believe Dipper just yet.

“You’re a mind demon that came from another dimension to wreak havoc in ours, but Ford and I managed to find a spell that could bind you into a physical form. Then we erased your memories with this memory gun, right here,” Dipper continued to explain anyways, while pulling out the memory gun that he was always bringing along, just in case. He could always just erase this conversation from Bill’s mind again if it went wrong.

The blond stared at the gun in disbelief. There was another moment of uncomfortable silence until, in a blur of motion Bill flung himself at Dipper, pushing him to the ground.

Dipper felt a sharp pain as the back of his head hit the ground and he only barely heard the multibear growl. He felt Bill’s hands on his neck, with only panic keeping him from blacking out. His air was cut off as Bill’s grip tightened and he didn’t know how to fight back... He was too dizzy and it was all happening so fast.

Then the other stopped squeezing and instead just slapped him, hard. Dipper heard another loud growl and then heavy pawsteps approaching them both, but one look at Bill’s face prompted him to turn to the bear and hold up his hand. The beast looked like he was ready to rip Bill’s head clean off.

Some tears landed on his cheek, making him cringe.

“Tell me this is not true,” Bill said, his voice sounding too sad for Dipper’s liking.

“I’m sorry. It’s not. I had to promise not to reveal it and now everything’s ruined. In retrospect, I should’ve known it would be impossible to keep the truth from you. Especially with that door in your mind,” Dipper explained, reaching up to gently push at Bill’s chest. The other boy was sitting on top of his and it was getting hard to breathe properly. 

He heard a quiet sob, but Bill did move a bit so that Dipper could properly sit up. It was a little awkward from Bill now sitting in his lap, probably not wanting to move for some weird reason, and Dipper felt his cheeks growing warm with embarrassment. 

“Bill, I’m really... I’m sorry,” he said again, averting his gaze. The multibear nodded at him before retreating to his cave, understanding that they needed to have a moment of privacy. 

“I don’t understand this. If you say I wanted to kill you, then why do I not feel the urge to do so right now? Could erasing all of my memories really change me that much? It doesn’t add up!” Bill said, voice shaky.

“If I knew, I’d tell you. That’s why I didn’t want to tell you in the first place. I was afraid you might remember. I actually think I can be friends with you now, and I didn’t want to ruin this,” he explained, feeling slightly terrible for wording it like this.

“But it’s not me now, is it? Not the real me. Oh my god... If me being like this is not actually real, then... Who am I? Am I even supposed to exist?!” Bill started to get hysteric, clutching his head as Dipper reached out to pull him into a hug.

“Does it really matter whether or not you’re ‘real’? I mean, you obviously exist! You’ve existed for over a year. Whether or not you’re supposed to doesn’t matter because you DO. There’s no changing that now.” Dipper kept babbling, trying to reassure Bill. He seemed to be having a personal crisis right about now.

Bill didn’t reply, he just leant into the embrace, relieving Dipper. At least he wasn’t pushing him farther away. He hoped this had been the right decision, but so far it seemed that it was better for Bill to know. There really had been no other way.

“Bill, I’m serious when I say that you can’t tell anyone you know about this now. I’m not exaggerating when I’m saying that Ford will try to kill you. You’re vulnerable now, in a mortal body which your soul is bound to. If this body dies, you definitely will. I don’t want this to happen.” He felt the strong need to underline that, because he wasn’t sure how Bill would react now that he knew the truth.

“I won’t tell. I didn’t even know you cared this much though, star child. It’s almost pathetic.” Bill huffed and finally looked up, grinning at Dipper like the little jerk he was. Dipper made a face and only then noticed that Bill had wrapped his arms over his shoulders and was still seated in his damn lap, face too close for comfort. Or was it?

“Jeez, yeah why the hell am I even worried about you?” he retorted and leaned back a bit, but Bill scoffed.

“Oh, stop being so oblivious!” Bill suddenly groaned.

Dipper frowned in confusion. Oblivious about what? “The hell are you talking about?” he asked.

Bill seemed to be studying his face for a moment, expression barely readable. He appeared to be going through his options, regarding whatever he was contemplating. Dipper was just about to break the silence when Bill leaned in and kissed him.

Dipper froze. His brain stopped working correctly as he felt Bill’s lips on his, and his heartbeat quickened.

**Option 1: Push him away.**  
**Option 2: Do nothing.**


	14. Do nothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is!
> 
> Sorry again for the long wait. I might actually have to say that this fic will probably end up updating in a two-week rythm now because it is really hard to write a chapter in one week. Especially with other projects on the sideline. I will still TRY to update every week but can't promise. Thank you all for sticking with me though! <3
> 
> Kudos to my editor [emberglows](http://www.emberglows.tumblr.com)  
> 

Dipper was still completely frozen to the spot. He still didn’t know what to do, even when he felt Bill leaning further into him. The kiss had come out of nowhere for him and part of him wanted to push the demon off and run. Run as far away as possible, or hide in Stan’s secret bunker. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to move. Eventually, Bill pulled away and made a face at him. Alarm bells went off in Dipper’s head, but all he could do was stare back, cheeks feeling hot and his stomach flipping over in an unpleasant way. 

“What’s the matter with you?” Bill asked after an agonizing moment of the two of them just staring at each other. He sounded anxious and angry at the same time.

“Why did you do that?” Dipper answered with another question. He could almost still feel the soft pressure of Bill’s lips against his and it was just so _odd_. Of course he’d kissed people before. He’d kissed boys before too. But this was different. This was Bill Cipher. And they didn’t even have any time to grow on each other. Hell, the past days had seemed more like a constant struggle than the past year they’d spent as roommates. During that time, they hadn’t communicated much anyways, but could it be possible that Bill had developed more of a liking to him than he had thought? Was that why he was so easily upset over Dipper being rejecting? Great, now he felt bad. Awful, in fact. How had he not noticed? He remembered the last night, when Bill just clung to him.

“Why?! I don’t know! Maybe because I like you, asshole!” Bill hissed and Dipper could see his eyes getting glassy again. Oh no. 

“No, no! Don’t cry!” the young man quickly exclaimed, his hands now flying up to grab Bill’s face. It was as if they moved on their own. “I can’t stand seeing you this upset. It’s so out of place.” He groaned a bit. 

Bill made a face and reached up to grab Dipper’s hands, pulling them away, his nails digging into Dipper’s skin to the point where it hurt. But he ignored it.

“Don’t give me that! After what you’ve told me, I’m sure it must be so tragic for you to see me act other than how you’d expect. Just after you told me it didn’t matter who I was!” Bill yelled in his face. Dipper felt hopeless. He was a complete and utter failure when it came to social interactions. Bill was about to move away, but without thinking too much about it, Dipper wrapped his arms around Bill’s waist instead, to keep him right where he was.

Dipper wasn’t exactly happy about having to sit on the cold stony floor with an ex-dream demon in his lap, but this was still better than letting Bill get away and ruining the chance of ever getting close to him again. He had made a lot of mistakes already and he didn’t know if he’d be able to fix them, but it wasn't too late yet.

“I’m sorry, Bill! I truly am. I don’t know how to deal with this. I didn’t know you liked me like this. You need to understand that this isn’t as easy as you think it is,” he tried to explain. At least Bill didn’t struggle against the grip Dipper had on him. Instead he’d stopped moving altogether and just stared at Dipper with an unreadable expression.

“If I had known, I… I could have made more of an effort. But I’m terrible at emotional things, you should know that!” Dipper added, still trying to defend himself. At last, Bill let out a sigh and shook his head. 

“I know,” Bill muttered, a defeated note to his voice. It looked like he wanted to say something else, but apparently words wouldn’t come to him. The awful twisting in Dipper’s stomach turned into a different thing entirely. 

“Let’s get back home and get some hot chocolate, yeah? I didn’t intend for any of this to happen. I’m so sick of getting into fights, Bill,” Dipper said, leaning forward. He rested his forehead lightly against Bill’s shoulder, in case the other wouldn’t appreciate it. His hands were still wrapped around the other boy and he noticed how thin he was. He had not been paying attention to how Bill sustained his body at all. He had not paid attention to anything. Instead, he had chosen to try and ignore the problem for an entire year, just because he’d thought of himself as more of a better person. What had he done?

“I’d like that.” Bill said and Dipper felt hands running over his back in a soothing motion. “Both, the hot chocolate and the not fighting,” he added with a chuckle. Dipper felt the urge to pull him even closer and bury his face in the other’s neck, but instead he let go to gesture for Bill to get up. At first he hesitated a bit, but then quickly got off Dipper’s lap so he could get back on his feet.

Dipper brushed some dirt off his pants before resting a hand on Bill’s shoulder. “I’ll be right back, I just want to apologize to Multibear for all of this. It really wasn’t how I had planned the day to go.” He sighed and Bill nodded.

With a few quick strides, he reached the entrance of the cave and looked inside. Multibear was at the end of the cave but looked over to him once he entered.

“Hey, I’m sorry for all of this. There’s… a lot of things me and him have to sort out,” Dipper started but Multibear shook his head.

“It’s okay, Dipper. I sensed your tension once you arrived. You must beware of him though. You remember well what once happened. It must not be repeated. Don’t grow too close to him.” The gruff voice of the bear sounded almost foreboding and Dipper hoped Bill wasn’t listening in on them.

“I think, this time, growing close to him might be the only way to actually solve the problem. But I will keep your warning in mind, thank you,” the man said apologetically and nodded to the creature before he left the cave. Bill still stood where he had left him, kicking small stones off the slight ledge.

Dipper walked up to him and swung an arm around his shoulder, making him almost jump.  
“Let’s go back home!” Dipper cheered, already starting to drag him back down the hillside.

“Jeez, I can walk just fine.” Bill protested, but there was the hint of a smirk on his face.

“Are you sure? I remember you tripping up the slope on the way here,” Dipper teased, earning himself a rough shove and he laughed. He finally felt freer around Bill and he thought, that maybe it _had_ been the right idea to confess everything to him. Now they could try and work on getting their issues sorted out. He looked to the sunny sky with a hopeful feeling.

\---

“Heyy, if it isn’t Dipdop and Bill! Where have you two been? You’ve been gone all day and Stan’s angry because he said you were going to watch the shop today!” Mabel greeted them with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

“Oh shit! I was?! I completely forgot,” Dipper yelped and Bill chuckled next to him.

“You forgetting things is nothing new.” Bill hummed and Dipper made a face at him.

“Well, since you weren’t here, I had to take your place! So you owe me a free workday, bro bro,” Mabel chimed. Dipper sighed but nodded; he couldn’t really argue with that reasoning, after all. 

“How was your date with Pacifica?” Dipper asked nonchalantly while walking over to the door that led to the kitchen. He watched Mabel’s face grow a bit redder and she huffed.

“It was good, for your information. What were _you two_ doing all alone in the woods?” She answered their question, immediately asking her own, and Dipper cringed. 

“We wrestled,” Bill quickly shot back, following Dipper. “I beat him up,” he added and Dipper had the urge to shove him again.

“I remember you were the one ending up crying,” he replied dryly. 

“Okay! Too much information. Get the hell outta here before I throw snow globes at you!” Mabel laughed and Dipper flipped her off.

“It wasn’t like _that_!” he grumbled and left the shop, followed by Bill. They entered the kitchen and Dipper froze when he saw Ford standing next to the fridge. He was reading a newspaper when they walked in.

“Hello there, Mr. Pines the Second! I haven’t seen you yet at all!” Bill exclaimed. Ford’s head snapped up and Dipper almost reflexively stepped in front of Bill. Shit, that was too obvious. He didn’t miss Ford narrowing his eyes at him, though.

Bill decided not to take this, however, and walked around Dipper, giving him a look he didn’t quite understand. The ex-demon held out his hand to Ford, who was obviously trying very hard not to give himself away. He seemed to hesitate, but then reached out and curtly shook Bill’s hand.

“Yeah. Good to have you back,” the older man said, sounding more passive than usual though. 

“Dipper, didn’t you say something about hot chocolate? Because I could REALLY use some of that right about now!” Bill hummed, turning back to Dipper, who had been kind of frozen to the spot. He quickly nodded and made himself relax while getting all the ingredients from the various cupboards. 

While rushing around the kitchen and getting mugs for them, he felt Ford's eyes almost burning into the back of his head. Guilt was practically choking him and he had the feeling that Ford could see right through him. He felt as if he had betrayed his mentor by telling Bill the truth, even if he knew it had been the right choice in the end. Speaking of the demon, Bill came up next to him and leaned against the counter to watch him.

“So, what were you guys doing today?” Ford asked nonchalantly and Dipper almost froze again. 

“We were visiting the Multibear. I wanted him to meet Bill.” Dipper sighed, pouring the powder into the mugs before adding milk.

“Also, we wrestled on top of a hill,” Bill chimed in. Dipper could hear the newspaper crumple up a bit. 

“Bill, stop that. Not everyone has to know,” he groaned, before realizing how badly that had been worded.

“Not everyone has to know what, Dipper?” Ford asked.  
God damnit.

**Option 1: “That Bill beat me up.”**  
**Option 2: “That we got into a fight.”**  
**Option 3: “It’s really unimportant!”**


End file.
